Mike Pettine mum on Gordon ticket

BEREA, Ohio -- The Cleveland Browns declined comment on Josh Gordon's latest off-field trouble, but coach Mike Pettine said there are times when a player just doesn't "get it."

"Sometimes guys get the message and it's too late," Pettine said, answering a question about whether the NFL does enough to help players while not speaking specifically about Gordon. "In all my time in the league, there's always going to be a handful of guys that just don't get it, but I think the league's done more than enough to get the word out."

Gordon was ticketed for speeding over Memorial Day weekend, and a passenger in his car was cited for marijuana possession.

The incident came as Gordon and the team await word on a potential season-long suspension for the receiver due to another failed drug test, this time for marijuana.

"I can't imagine that it wouldn't [weigh on him]," Pettine said. "It's human nature."

A year ago, Gordon was suspended two games without pay and an additional two game checks for violating the NFL's substance-abuse policy. He went on to lead the league in receiving yards.

"I think everybody can sense the frustration," Pettine said. "It's a difficult thing. ... We have a plan in place for all eventualities, but like everybody else, we're still in a holding pattern."

Gordon, quite visible this offseason prior to ESPN's "Outside the Lines" report of his latest suspension, declined interviews through the team's media relations department.

Pettine said Gordon has been professional and dedicated when he's been with the team.

"[He's] not the first guy in the league to be like that," Pettine said. "When he's in the building, he's great, and [he] has some issues, for whatever reason due to circumstances, when he's out of the building. I'm not a stranger to situations like that, and I don't think the rest of the staff is either."

Pettine added that any time a player has problems off the field "it can be [troubling], especially if it's a pattern."

Gordon also had off-field issues while at Baylor and Utah.

Fellow receiver Nate Burleson, who signed with the Browns as a free agent, knows what the team would miss without Gordon.

"You only get so many guys every few years who can redefine the position, and he's one of those guys," Burleson said. "He's not your traditional receiver. Neither is Calvin [Johnson]. Neither is Randy [Moss]. These guys were hit with that special stick. God blessed them with attributes that you can only create in video games.

"For [Gordon] to miss any time, it's a loss for everybody in general."